154. Great Sun Association (4)
Great Sun Association (4)
154. Great Sun Association (4)
Once we returned to Sakju, we would buy a wagon and a tent, and the camping would be over. So tonight might very well be the last night. The frozen ground was a little uncomfortable, but honestly, thanks to the Flame Blossom Art, I didn't feel the cold at all, and with the madly glittering multitudes of stars I could never have dreamed of in the 21st century, the camping wasn't half bad.
For a moment while I gazed at the night sky, I felt as if everything in the world had stopped. Then, hundreds of golden cards appeared before my eyes. Ah... right. I had slaughtered another hundred men. And I'd already cut down more than ten in Sakju, too.
Unlimited Magic Power was a precious ability that had truly changed my life and Yeongsan Sect's future, and Dwarf's Soul, though I didn't use it often, was clearly a formidable power. With my heart pounding, I grabbed a card that caught my eye, and all the cards vanished in an instant.
—Unerring Shot—
An ability that, once a day, allows any projectile, arrow or bullet, to strike its target without fail, provided the target is within 297 meters.
This one was a bit ambiguous. It seemed like an incredible ability, but when I thought about it, at that distance, there was no way I would miss now anyway. Plus, my basic tactic was ranged attacks that fired the Four Heroes, so it looked even more useless, and I already looked like a lunatic carrying five swords—add a bow and arrows to that? This was probably a dud card, wasn't it?
When morning dawned, Lee Eun-ha prepared the meal just as she had the day before, and the beggar, the Daoist, and the monks all naturally lined up in front of Lee Eun-ha's pot as if it were a soup kitchen. The Beggars' Sect and Yeongsan Sect were sects that carried their own bowls and were prepared, but Shaolin and Wudang hurriedly whittled nearby branches into makeshift bowls and then waited in line in front of Lee Eun-ha.
"Kahaha! I thought Yeongsan Sect was a sect that resembled Wudang, but it turns out you're a sect that resembles us Beggars' Sect! I never knew there were two sects in the Martial World that carried their own bowls."
The Drunken Beggar spoke with a cheerful laugh. Despite the considerable age gap, this man who somehow felt like a friend made the joke knowing full well how I'd react.
"The class of the bowl is different. This here is a treasure-grade eating vessel."
"Does putting food in a pretty bowl really make it taste better?"
"It's easier to wash. We're not beggars, so we have to wash our bowls after eating."
Even at my snarky remark, the Drunken Beggar glanced at Lee Eun-ha and began to bring up something else.
"Yeongsan Sect is the absolute best under heaven in everything! Your martial arts go without saying, the Sect Leader is the finest sect head, Miss Son's dazzling talent shines like our Bok-i, and you even have the greatest chef under heaven—I ought to move myself to the Beggars' Sect Liaodong Branch in my later years."
"The greatest chef under heaven? If real chefs heard that, they'd be truly dumbfounded."
Lee Eun-ha was slightly flustered by the Drunken Beggar's glib flattery.
"Senior Sister, this old man's a beggar. The glib flattery means he wants another bowl of rice."
At that, Lee Eun-ha giggled and heaped rice high into the Drunken Beggar's begging bowl.
"I agree. Among martial artists younger than myself, it is likely that Reverend Yeongmok is the strongest. But if we speak of the generation after that, it will surely be Bodhisattva Cho-ryeong."
Hyesang spoke with a cheerful smile. Our Senior Sister Cho—she had Geo Am and the other Shaolin monks completely wrapped around her finger. Did Cho-ryeong give off some kind of pheromone that bewitched monks? Come to think of it, Cho-ryeong had been surrounded by monks since morning, learning something, and had come back with a pebble she was playing with like a toy, just like a child. The problem was that she was pecking holes into the pebble with her tiny fingers, poke, poke.
Were the Shaolin monks serious? Wasn't that One-Finger Zen?
"Elder. Why is there no mention of me?"
Jeong-hyang poked her head out gently and asked playfully.
"Daoist Jeong, of course, would be that lovely face. The hero who wins her heart will be the envy of all under heaven."
A true beggar, the Drunken Beggar, not forgetting to flatter right to the end. Still unaware of how beautiful she was, Jeong-hyang smiled radiantly at his praise. Shaolin, Wudang, and the Beggars' Sect were factions with no connection to women anyway, but everyone's faces brightened at Jeong-hyang's smile, which was more brilliant than flowers.
That reminded me of the Medical Immortal. She was one of the Four Flowers of the Martial World, wasn't she? Was she truly as beautiful as Jeong-hyang and as remarkable a person as Lee Eun-ha?
"Does the Medical Immortal's medicine differ greatly from Teacher's pharmacology?"
As if she had likewise thought of the Medical Immortal from the Drunken Beggar's talk, Lee Eun-ha suddenly asked me.
"I don't know well myself, but rumor has it that the Medical Immortal's medical arts are not limited to prescribing decoctions and involve a distinctive art of suturing wounds and excising affected areas."
In truth, there was nothing distinctive about it. The Medicine Immortal's pharmacology resembled traditional East Asian medicine, while the Medical Immortal's medical arts resembled Western surgery. But in the Central Plains of this era, it was still truly unusual.
"Her medical skill is remarkable, but I had wanted to meet that person at least once, who, like Teacher, has saved the lives of so many people. Is she truly as beautiful as Senior Sister Jeong?"
"I'd have to meet her in person to know. Many who've met the Medical Immortal praise her beauty, but she is a woman who saved their lives—a plain face might have looked as beautiful as a fairy's."
Beauty was a woman's treasure, but in this matter, it seemed her beauty would become poison. Jo Sa-eun had said she was tasked with the work of a prostitute, relieving the lust of the Great Sun Association martial artists, and they were made to turn prisoners into whores. I still had no idea at all why they had suddenly hunted prisoners or why they had built a separate prison camp rather than using the main sect's dungeon, but one thing was certain: I could guess what situation the female prisoners were in.
Perhaps she might still be safe. The minor sects of Shanxi, knowing the terror of Great Sun Association, had risen up upon hearing of her abduction. They were utterly crushed, but even now, genuine martial artists from all over the Central Plains were assembling in Shanxi to rescue her, so if Great Sun Association had any sense, they would not treat her carelessly.
Well, I could only pray that was the case.
Perhaps due to the dazzling victory, all of us walked back to Sakju chattering without pause. Talkative martial artists were a little odd, but when I thought about it, monks, Daoists, and beggars were professions for which eloquence was essential.
"Year after year, I have offered lanterns for the reverend. I did not know you had become a Daoist."
When one of the younger Shaolin monks spoke with a quiet smile, Hyesang looked at him and tilted his head.
"You say that lanterns for Reverend Yeongmok are offered annually at our temple?"
"Yes. Reverend Yeongmok is the eldest son of the Jilin Baek Clan Estate. The Baek Clan Estate has been a great patron of Shaolin for decades, sending no small amount of donations."
Venerable Hyesang looked slightly surprised at the young monk's words.
"My great-great-grandfather was a lay disciple of Shaolin and founded the Baek Clan Estate."
Well, we had sent tribute every year, but Henan, where Shaolin was located, was so distant that no direct descendant of the Baek Clan had visited in person the way the Murong Clan did. Even if we had visited, at the level of the Baek Clan Estate, we would barely have been able to meet the monk in charge of donations.
"Indeed. This, too, is karmic affinity. Viewed broadly, Reverend Yeongmok is also family to Shaolin. The saying that all within the four seas walk the same path was no empty phrase."
Venerable Hyesang smiled pleasantly at the karmic connection. But as for donations, the Baek Clan Estate had been making them for decades. It was only now that I had earned the standing to interact on equal footing with the Shaolin Abbot's disciple that this could become a karmic bond.
"I, too, am bound to Yeongsan Sect like a brother. I heard it from the Yeongsan Sect Leader earlier. Reverend Hwangseong, the founder of Yeongsan Sect, was my master's senior brother. That left me deeply ashamed. I had heard that Yeongsan endured countless hardships unlike today, yet I lived unaware of my brother sect's troubles, and my face burned with shame."
Hyeon-gang spoke awkwardly. So even a reverend like him could make that kind of expression. This was all thanks to Great Grandmaster Hwangseong, but still, couldn't you have noticed just a little sooner? At least by the time Heavenly Wolf Sect attacked, maybe?
"Visit Wudang someday. Master Heo San has no grave, but Master Heo San's spirit tablet remains."
"I will make sure to visit."
—You're lucky, aren't you? You can see your own spirit tablet if you go to Wudang?—
At Hyeon-gang's words, Geo Am laughed merrily.
—Do you think there would be no spirit tablet for you? Though Mount Tai Sect has fallen on hard times, would they have failed even to set up the reverend's spirit tablet?—
Heosan answered Geo Am calmly. Honestly, what had surprised me was that Heosan, whose last lingering attachment had been to climb Mount Wudang one more time, hadn't been particularly excited even after seeing the Wudang disciples, aside from the matter of the Great Clarity Internal Art's form-switching technique. Was it because the Wudang of this era, even if not Heosan himself, already stood at the pinnacle of the Martial World, and unlike the other heroes, he simply wanted to see the spirit tablets of his master and grandmaster, rather than worrying about the later generations of his school and disciples?
It would sound absurd for a Daoist to say this, but he, too, was already dead and in the state of a spirit—what meaning could there be in bowing to a spirit tablet, a mere piece of carved wood? Well, given this era and its atmosphere, I decided we would make spirit tablets for Flame Emperor and Moon Immortal, who likely had none remaining, and enshrine them at Yeongsan Sect. Questioning whether religious rites were real was truly meaningless.
We had returned to Sakju with the orthodox martial artists, but even though a great incident in which hundreds had died had occurred right in the next town over, the common folk uninvolved with the martial world still carried on their busy lives. Those Great Sun Association bastards. It seemed they had refrained from touching anyone who hadn't trained in martial arts, in order to avoid the notice of the authorities and the Martial Alliance. It was a shallow trick, but still, I was relieved that, thanks to it, the lives of the common folk hadn't collapsed.
"Then, Sect Leader. I wish you fortune in battle. I wish to see for myself how far your Great Clarity Internal Art and Taiji Wisdom Sword will reach, so by all means, return safely."
While we secured an inn, the orthodox martial artists wrote down the things we had experienced in their letters, delivered them to the Beggars' Sect beggars, hastily purchased only the necessary items, and then bid us farewell.
"Reverend Hyeon-gang. It was truly an honor to meet you. Reverend Hyeon-gang's strength is known to all the world, but you must not overexert yourself."
My master parted with Hyeon-gang, her eyes even glistening with tears. She had grown far more attached to Hyeon-gang than I'd expected. In the past, during those shit-smeared days at Yeongsan Sect, she had been treated like a servant, let alone a disciple, never seeing a true Daoist—only charlatan Daoists. So seeing Hyeon-gang, a Daoist perfect in everything from genuine martial arts to character, must have been a considerable shock. Now she had Heosan's spirit to teach her martial arts, Hwangseong's spirit to teach her Daoist studies, and she had even been reunited with her true master.
But Hyeon-gang, who had kindly taught her all sorts of things on the grounds that he was a senior Daoist despite being from another sect, might have felt to her like a true teacher. Even to my eyes, Hyeon-gang had appeared to be a far more respectable Daoist than Hwangseong, the founder of the Spirit-Binding Art and a genius of Daoist studies.
Cho-ryeong, who always shared tearful farewells with the girls, this time bade farewell to the monks. Son Yeong, who had been silent the entire way back, had likely grasped another clue toward enlightenment during that battle, so tonight, I would just have to hold only Son Yeong.
Because the victory had been so overwhelming, there were no wounded at all. Lee Eun-ha gave them upgraded medicinal pills along with wound salve and internal injury pills. During the emotional farewell scene, the Drunken Beggar slyly targeted Jeong-hyang, who lacked a sense for money, and managed to wheedle ten silver taels out of her.
"It was a tremendous experience. This was the true face of the Martial World."
My master spoke wistfully as she watched them depart.
"Master, you were truly impressive yourself, you know. Now not only Murong and Peng but even Shaolin, Wudang, and the Beggars' Sect all acknowledge you."
"I know my place. If I seemed impressive, it was because I am Yeongmok's master."
My master had changed. In the past, we'd had this kind of conversation hundreds of times, but now, her face showed no sign of an inferiority complex. She, who had always been like a mother, now held gentle warmth and resilient vitality in her eyes.
"I received permission from Reverend Hyeon-gang to teach the Taiji Wisdom Sword Formation at Yeongsan. It seems I have received too great a favor."
My master gazed at the path Hyeon-gang had taken with wistful eyes.
"Taiji belongs to all Daoists. It is Zhang Sanfeng's teaching."
I offered my master the appropriate agreement, but in truth, Hyeon-gang's permission surely had its own calculation. Hyeon-gang was a truly benevolent Daoist, but he was also an old man who had lived nearly a hundred years in the Martial World, where schemes and machinations ran rampant. For better or worse, the Great Clarity Internal Art and Taiji Wisdom Sword had ended up in Yeongsan's hands. If a sword formation were added to that, Yeongsan would grow far stronger. No matter how I thought about it, after the Four Heroes departed, Taiji Wisdom Sword and Flame Blossom Art could only become Yeongsan Sect's main martial arts.
Moonlit Divine Sword and Vajra Art were arts that selected for high-level talent, and Shennong Art was an art only for truly peculiar eccentrics. We had the Ice Soul Divine Art, but Jeong-hyang could learn it only because she was my wife and carried half the blood of the Ice Palace; it wasn't something future Yeongsan disciples could learn. Well, we also had Water Moon Dance and Pure Sound Art, but there was no reason to have anyone learn those when we had first-rate martial arts.
In the end, it came down to Taiji Wisdom Sword and Flame Blossom Art, and among those, Taiji Wisdom Sword would surely be the primary mainstay rather than Flame Blossom Art, which women could not learn. Maybe in the distant future, but for the time being, Yeongsan Sect, packed with women, seemed slightly awkward to accept large numbers of male disciples.
To a Yeongsan Sect like that, the Taiji Wisdom Sword Formation was a gift truly worth a thousand pieces of gold. But this was by no means a bad thing for Wudang either. Every time Yeongsan Sect gradually grew and raised its prestige in the Martial World, everyone in the Central Plains would once again praise Wudang's Taiji Wisdom Sword as they watched the Taiji Wisdom Sword wielded by Yeongsan. Moreover, if we eventually grew to a level equal to Wudang, we would naturally become allies, and having learned the same Taiji Wisdom Sword Formation, we would gain a staggering degree of combined power, on a wholly different plane from ordinary alliances. If we grew into a second-rate sect unable to match Wudang, then Yeongsan, using the Taiji Wisdom Sword, would be regarded in the Martial World as subordinate to Wudang.
At a glance, it seemed like a one-sided loss for Wudang, but beneath the surface lay complex calculations like these. But this was clearly Reverend Hyeon-gang's goodwill, and since my master was taken with Hyeon-gang, there was no need to explain it to her.
Anyway, we had acquired the sword formation.